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(ModeL) H. T. HARDING.

GHEGK EEIN. No 263,901. Patented Sept. 5, 1882..

v WITNESSES: INVBNTOR:

ATTORNEYS.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY T. HARDING, OF MAITLAND, NOVA SUOTIA, CANADA.

CHECKY-REIN.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent No. 263,901, dated September 5, 1882.

Application filed J one 28, 1882.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HARRY T. HARDING, of Maitland, in the county of Hants, in the Province of Nova Scotia and Dominion of Canada, have inventeda new and Improved Check- Rein, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention consists of a strap hooked to thewater-hook of the back saddle for ape-rmanent fastening, with a branch extending therel'rom along each side of the neck of the horse, through rings or loops of short straps from the bridle, and thence back or down to and connecting with the driving-reins in aparbuckle arrangement, by which the tension of the cheek-rein is increased and relaxed in uniformity with that on the driving-reins, whereby the permanent check is dispensed with and the horse relieved thereof, except when it is required to subject him to it, as hereinafter fully described.

Reference is tobo had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in both the figures.

Figure} is a perspective view of the head and shoulders of a horse with my improved checkrein thereon. Fig. 2 is a plan of a portion of the check-rein. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of an application of my improvement in double harness.

A represents a short strap, with suitable branches 1) buckled or otherwise attached to it, which I hook onto the water-hookG ot' the backsaddle (1, as shown, extending the branches I) therefrom along the respective sides of the neck of the horse to a suitable extent where they meet and pass through rings, or other openings e of straps f, extending backward from the fore-straps g of the bridle; or it may be any other straps suitably connected with the bit for check-reins. From strapsf the said straps I) extend to and connect by snap-hooks It or other suitable devices with the driving-reins i in ad vanee of the hame-riugsj, so that the pull of the driver on the driving-reins will also pull 'up the checkwein at the same time, and the check will be slackened when the driving-reins are, which affords great relief to the horse by relaxation from the check when it is not necessary to subject him to it. Moreover, the strain on the check varies with that on the drivingreins, and is therefore severe only at times (ModeL) when it is required to be so, Whereas the common check affords no relaxation, and it is always in the greatest tension.

The strap 1) may be connected to the drivingreins, so as to be shifted along them from one point to another to alter the strain on the checkrein, as may be required, and the connection may be such that it may-draw through the heme-ring if desired.

I propose to employ snap-rings h for making the said connection, so as to detach it readily and to hook it onto the water-hook or into the buckles ot' strap 1) near the hook, in case it may be desired to convert the check into the ordinary permanent form.

The arrangementfor double harness will be substantially the same as in single harness, except that the parbuckle will be a single strap secured at O, thence through loop a, and will extend through the inside terret, 7a, to thebuckle l, where the coupling of the driving-reins is made, the ring 6 being preferably set farther back for double harness.-

This check may thus be used alike with single or double harness.

It will be seen that the parbuekle arrangement very largely increases the power of the driver over the horse. At the same time-the arrangement is such that it is impossible to ex- I ert that power to any undue extent if the adjustments are properly made. The device is distinguished in this particular from all others of the kind in use. i

Having thus described myinven tion,I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent-- In a check-rein, the combination, with the overdraw-straps ff, extended down along the sides of the horses neck, and having at their depending ends eyes, loops, or rings 0, and the driving-reins 11, passed through the hame rings or eyes j, of the short strap A, connected to the back saddle water hoop c, and having the branch-straps 12, extended up to theeyes, loops, or rings 0 of the over-draw strapsf, and down through the same, and connected to the driving-reins t' at a point between the hame-rings or eyes j and the bridle-bit, substantially as shown and described, and for the purpose set forth.

H ARRY T.'HARDING. I

Witnesses: S. E. GoUaLEY, CHARLES A. MoGULLY. 

